Stephenville

In the series finale, Scott Hatley’s journal tells the story of how he built a new life on the run from police. And when the truth comes out, people in Stephenville must confront how little they knew about the man who killed Susan Woods.

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Lt. Don Miller discovers the hand-written life story of the man who killed Susan Woods. The murderer, it turns out, wasn't a stranger or an outsider to Stephenville, but a local boy nobody suspected.

For more on this and every episode, visit texasmonthly.com/stephenville

In 1988, Shannon Myers survived a brutal attack by Joseph Scott Hatley, the man whose fingerprints were also present at the scene of Susan Woods’s murder. Her statement to police—which included his chilling confession—created an opportunity to put Hatley behind bars for both crimes.

For more on this and every episode, visit texasmonthly.com/stephenville

Nearly twenty years after Susan Woods's murder, Stephenville Police Lieutenant Don Miller takes up the case. And with Michael Woods's cooperation, and help from new technology, Don finally makes a break in the case. But what he uncovers raises even more questions about why Susan was killed—and how her killer evaded justice for so long.

For more on this and every episode, visit texasmonthly.com/stephenville

After Susan Woods was killed, just about everyone in Stephenville—including the police—figured they knew who’d done it. Her estranged husband, Michael Woods, was a long-haired biker who smoked pot and played rock music—a complete misfit in the “Cowboy Capital of the World.” For more on this and every episode, visit texasmonthly.com/stephenville

From the moment Susan Woods was found dead at home in the summer of 1987, everyone in Stephenville, Texas—including the police—was certain she’d been killed by her estranged husband.

That left the real culprit free to prey on others. In "Stephenville," best-selling author Bryan Burrough returns to his small-town Texas roots to explore a murder case that went cold for nearly two decades. Only now, after discovering a voice from beyond the grave, can the whole story finally be told—a story about the secrets that got buried, and how some folks in this town helped keep them that way.

From the Texas Monthly team behind "Tom Brown’s Body" comes another true story of crime, suspicion, and life in small-town Texas. Coming June 20, 2023.